Straight of Hormuz

Oil in the Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf countries contain a significant percentage of the world's oil reserves and production capacity:

  • Proven oil reserves of 728 billion barrels, representing 55 percent of the world's oil reserves at the end of 2006
  • Oil production capacity of 25.4 million barrels per day (33 percent of the world total) at the end of 2006  
  • Total oil production of 23.6 million barrels per day in 2006  
  • About 2.4 - 2.9 million barrels per day of excess oil production capacity, as of March 2007, of which 1.9 to 2.4 million barrel per day is located in Saudi Arabia [i] 

The Persian Gulf Region and Global Energy (as a % of global)

The Persian Gulf's role in global energy. Shows a breakdown of Persian Gulf energy as a % of worldwide totals.

Source: Energy Information Administration Short Term Energy Outlook (2006)


The Persian Gulf exports approximately 18.2 million barrels of oil per day; approximately 17 million barrels per day transit through the Strait of Hormuz in tankers.  Additionally, over 3.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas, approximately 18 percent of world shipments, travel through the Strait via LNG tankers.[ii]  There are few alternate routes for exporting Persian Gulf oil and gas, making the Strait of Hormuz an important chokepoint.

Persian Gulf oil is shipped east to Asia, primarily to Japan, China, and India, and west to Western Europe and the United States.

OPEC Flows of Crude and Refined Oil, 2006 (1000s of barrels per day)

 

Europe

North
America

Asia and
Pacific

Latin
America

Africa

Middle
East

Total
World

IRAN

1,084

0

1,605

0

149

0

2,839

IRAQ

371

664

446

0

0

0

1,481

KUWAIT

317

154

1,956

0

46

0

2,473

QATAR

0

3

699

0

0

0

701

SAUDI ARABIA

1,163

1,501

4,721

85

340

497

8,307

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

78

9

2,741

0

44

0

2,873

Source: OPEC flows of Crude and Refined Oil, 2006, http://www.opec.org/library/Annual%20Statistical%20Bulletin/interactive/FileZ/Flowbot.htm

 

[i] Energy Information Administration, Country Analysis Briefs:  Persian Gulf Region (June 2007). Online.  Available: http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/Persian_Gulf/pdf.pdf.  Accessed: February 10, 2008.

[ii] Energy Information Administration, Country Analysis Briefs:  Persian Gulf Region (June 2007). Online.  Available: http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/Persian_Gulf/pdf.pdf.  Accessed: February 10, 2008.


This page last modified in August 2008